President Donald Trump on Wednesday said he was focused on "fair and reciprocal" trade in Asia."Trade abuses harm the United States and its workers, but no more," he said at the White House.
"My message has resonated. The 21 [Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation] leaders, for the first time ever, recognized the importance of fair of reciprocal trade, recognized the need to address unfair trade practices, and acknowledged that the [World Trade Organization] is in strong need of reform," Trump said.
The remarks came a day after the president returned from a nearly two-week trip to Asia, where he visited Japan, South Korea, China, Vietnam and the Philippines.
Earlier in the week, Trump stressed the business deals he said American companies had inked during the trip, but was cryptic about whether the visit had produced any concrete bilateral agreements.
"We've made some very big steps with respect to trade, far bigger than anything you know, in addition to about $300 billion in sales to various companies, including China — that was $250 billion and going up very substantially from that," he said Monday in Manila.
On the way home, Trump told reporters on Air Force One that much of the progress he had made during the trip was interpersonal.
"I think we made a lot of progress, just in terms of relationship," he said.
WATCH: Trump says US will not turn a blind eye to trading abuses
